Equipment installation, configuration, maintenance and personnel training are complicated tasks. This is especially true in the high-tech fields (telecommunications, networking, high-performance computing, etc.) where multi-slot shelves or chassis can accept a wide variety of plug-in cards, modules, etc., where slots are difficult to differentiate visually, and where technology development cycles are so rapid that the personnel training is frequently unable to keep up. Communication equipment requirements further complicate the situation by demanding manual front-panel interconnection of plug-in cards, modules, with optical and/or electrical cabling. Conventional equipment installation procedures are focused on installer training, written manuals, and some built-in diagnostics in the equipment to identify circuit pack compatibility and provide some information on cable interconnections. Conventional equipment manual installation and training processes are cumbersome, expensive, error prone, unsecure, and not traceable.